What are parents for?
by FirefliesUnite
Summary: A small child is lost in the forest. Was it an accident, or was it on purpose? What happens when the child stumbles upon the indusputed kings of the forest?


What are parents for?

‚Father, father, where are you?' The small blond boy kept shouting, while running through the snowy woods. The wind was howling through the trees, tearing at his clothes.

He couldn't see where he was going, he didn't know where he was, all he knew is that he was alone. Utterly alone.

A part of him was hoping that someone was looking for him, that his screams of despair would reach their ears and that any minute, a tall figure would appear out of the storm, snatch him up and carry him home. Another part of him felt that him being lost was no coincidence. This was the first time something like this happened but deep down he knew it had only been a matter of time. He couldn't quite formulate the thought just yet, but even his childish understanding of things revealed to him that in a way, he was undesirable to his father. Something about him was wrong.

'Father!' He stopped and fell to his knees. He was shivering. 'Don't leave me.' The child whimpered, curling up in a ball. This was it, wasn't it? He would die, alone in the woods, with no one hearing his cries. Elijah wasn't around to save him, his mother wasn't around to hold him, and not even Kol was around to cheer him up. His clothes were starting to soak through from the snow he was lying on. He was shaking uncontrollably.

Then suddenly he heard a terrifying sound. The howl of a wolf rang through the night, overshadowing the storm's raging for a second. The boy looked up, fear dulling his senses for a second, renewing his strength. He got up and tried running but his body wouldn't obey him. He fell to his knees again. Just as he was about to push himself up, he felt a warm breath on his neck. He spun around, falling on his back, and stared right into the eyes of a full grown wolf. He screamed in sheer panic and tried crawling backwards, but his limbs were stiff and would barely budge.

He knew there was no saving him. Freezing to death would have been preferable by far. He started crying, the salty tears being blown away, their trail drying up and a salty crust remaining on his cheeks. He noticed the other wolves now. A pack of them. He tried pulling his arms around his body but it would have been a futile gesture even if he was able to do so. The first wolf, a big grey one, stepped forward. The boy closed his eyes and almost jumped as the raw tongue of the beast ran over his face. He shuddered hard, feeling the difference between the cold and raw terror in his bones. Then the wolf bit down on his tunic and pulled him towards his brethren. The small head bobbed up and down, the child almost forcefully falling into a state of unconsciousness. Exhaustion, cold and fear had driven the last remnant of strength from him. Before he completely clocked out he whispered one last word.

'Father.'

The next morning he woke to someone screaming his name.

'Niklaus!' It was his mother's voice and he sat up gingerly. 'Niklaus!' The shout was growing louder and soon he found himself in the warm embrace of Esther Mikaelson.

'Mother.' He mumbled hugging back.

'What happened child?' The woman asked. 'I was worried sick when Mikael came back without you. He said he had lost you in the woods!' No matter how many times Esther would tell herself this story, it would never sound believable, not even to her ears.

'I don't know mother.' Niklaus answered before looking around. 'I was sure the wolves would eat me.'

'The wolves?' His mother instantly froze. 'You say there were wolves?'

'Yes. A whole pack of them!' The young boy answered. He realized it was early morning but his return had caused the villagers to wake and assemble around them.

'It is a Christmas miracle!' A young woman beamed as the young boy was hugged by virtually everyone in his vicinity.

Only Mikael, his father stood in the distance, watching the young child squirm in the hands of overly emotional women. He turned away, a deep scowl on his face. He looked up at the sky.

It was early morning and the sun was well on its way up the sky, however, the moon was still visible. A full, round moon.

'Impossible.' He murmured to himself. There was no way there could be any correlation. This had to be magic. Yes, magic. This couldn't have anything to do with those filthy monsters roaming the forest at night. However, from that moment on, he couldn't help but wonder. His own child…

'Impossible.' He spat, shouldering his axe and disappearing into the forest.


End file.
